Everything to Fear
by xstrike00
Summary: We all know kishin Asura: evil, paranoid, adorable. But what was he like before then? And more importantly, how did he fall to madness? Just a story about Asura back in the day and how he became a Kishin.


**Hiya! This is my first story so bear with me. :3 **

**There's not nearly enough Asura stories here-so I can fix that by adding one more! This is basically about what Asura was like before he became a Kishin, or more accurately, what led him to becoming a Kishin. **

**If I got something wrong, or something doesn't match the actual Soul Eater world, feel free to tell me and I'll change it. Don't hate if I have a few details wrong-this is fanfiction, I'm allowed ;P**

**I had no idea what Vajra looks like in 'human-mode' so I used my imagination. And my imagination described him as Hiro. Sowwy! But I do like the idea of making him Asura's opposite.**

**Disclaimer: I WISH.**

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The sky above was overcast; only a few brave rays of sun managed to filter through and touch the ground underneath. The air was completely still, as if the world was holding its breath in preparation for the fight that was about to take place.

The landscape had an eerie, light blue tingle. A river, a scar that cut through the earth, ran almost straight into a small crater, where it pooled into a deep blue lake. The floor of the crater was sandy and bare, marked only by the presence of a single being which sat crouched into an odd position, poised at the edge of the lake as though it were to leap in at any second. Lost deep in thought, the being had no idea that it was not alone.

A few meters away, among the rocks surrounding the crater hid two smaller figures, occasionally glancing over the top of a boulder to mark their enemy's position. They spoke in hushed voices so as to not give away their presence.

"He's not moving," remarked a young man after making sure. He wore a red pinstriped blazer and plain black pants. A single black scarf circled his neck, shielding him from the morning chill.

"Weird," responded his companion. His breath made a cloud in the frigid air. "He probably will soon; I would. He must be cramped as hell. We should attack soon." Upon receiving no reply to the statement, he prodded the other impatiently. "Asura!"

"I'm thinking!" Asura snapped. He crossed his arms against the cold and rocked nervously back and forth. "I don't know where the best place to attack from is. Behind? In front? To the side?"

"Oh, who cares?" came the impatient response. "We'll win anyway. That guy doesn't even have a weapon."

"Duh, Vajra!" It was Asura's turn to prod his partner in the side. "That's what I'm worried about—he must have a trick up his sleeve to go out into some crater unprotected."

"You worry too much. The little prick will have gone by the time you pick out the perfect spot." Vajra's turquoise eyes glinted and disappeared as he reached up to peer into the crater.

"No!" Asura gasped, tugging on his partner's coat. But it was too late; Vajra suddenly crouched down, nearly hitting a sharp stone.

"Dammit, he saw me!"

Asura's eyes widened and he felt his stomach turn in terror. "You..."

"Let's go!" With a single move, Vajra leaped over the boulder which had hidden their existence. Once in the open, he slid down the sandy walls of the crater, a huge cloud of dust following him. Asura rolled up his sleeves and followed swiftly, sprinting almost vertically down the side.

"Let's go, Vajra!" he yelled, stretching out his hand.

"Right!"

In a flash, Vajra's tall form glowed red and then shrank, floating in the air. Asura grabbed the weapon just as it began to fall, and didn't waste a moment in sprinting toward the lake. Their adversary had gotten up and was standing defensively only a few inches away from the water's edge. A single flash of lightning illuminated his face. Asura shuddered—the face, so far from human, was just terrifying. It was pale white, with dark circles that framed eyes stretched out too wide, and pupils shrunk to pinpoints.

"Your days of eating innocent souls are over, Hal!" Asura skidded to a halt a few feet away from his enemy.

"How are you going to stop me?" A twisted smile split the man's face in half. A deafening crack of thunder accompanied him.

Asura smirked. "I think I should ask you the same question."

"Get away, freak!" Hal screeched.

The smile fell from Asura's face. "Your soul is mine." With that, he pointed Vajra at Hal's chest. A burst of red energy flew at the evil human.

_Too easy._

At the last moment, Hal pitched backward into the water. Vajra's attack sailed past and hit the rocks at the other end of the crater with a loud crack.

"Impossible!" Vajra's voice cried. "Nobody could have dodged that!" His image appeared as though reflected in the gold of his weapon form.

Asura's eyebrows met in frustration. He stalked up to the edge of the lake and glared at Hal, whose head had just popped up from the water. "Why are you prolonging the inevitable? You don't have to make this so hard for yourself."

"You started it!" Hal said, oddly calm.

"No. You did when you began consuming innocent human souls!" Asura aimed again. "Now..."

His cry was cut off as a wave of water sent him flying backwards. He sprawled in the sand, soaked to the skin. Asura lay shivering; every nerve in his body was screaming for him to retreat. "Magic..." he whispered.

"Hey!" Vajra screamed. "Get up and fight!"

A drop of water fell onto the back of Asura's head. He rolled over and turned to see Hal, dripping with water, standing over him triumphantly. Panicked, Asura reached for his weapon, but a soaked boot kicked it away. Vajra rolled to the very edge of the crater, where he quickly turned back to his human form. "Asura!"

Instantly, Asura leaped up to his feet and landed a blow at Hal's head; the other man staggered backwards. Using the opportunity, Asura dashed towards his weapon partner.

"No you don't!" snarled Hal. His voice was high-pitched and sounded more like an animal than a human.

Narrowing his eyes, Asura imagined Hal as he had been: a friendly brown-haired guy who always helped out in hunting down evil humans. Now, he was the one who had to be hunted down. Asura could see his soul too—not clear and bright as it had been, but now a Kishin egg, filled with dozens of innocent human souls. He had to be stopped before he killed any more.

Asura's hesitation gave Hal the window of opportunity he had needed; pointing his finger at the black-haired meister, he shouted, "Water bullets!"

Instantly, all of the water on Hal's body flew forward, beading into drops, and charged straight at Asura, who ducked hard. His chin hit the ground, but he hardly noticed the pain. The bullets flew harmlessly past. Meanwhile, Asura ran toward Vajra. He glanced backwards almost continuously, keeping an eye out for another attack.

Hal, however had doubled over, crying out in pain. Bright light shone around his body as he collapsed, a cloud of dust surrounding him. Asura almost stopped in his tracks from the madness that radiated from his former ally; but fear drove him forward. He grabbed Vajra's hand, who instantly transformed.

Hal was looking at him with a crazed smile, as if he were enjoying the pain. "Nothing can stop me now," he grunted—just as a beam of red light hit him square in the face.

He was thrown backward. Asura advanced staring at Hal's bloody figure.

"Why do you hate me so much to do this?" wailed Hal. The glow around him was decreasing in intensity.

Asura shook his head slowly. "I'm not doing this because I hate you, Hal. I'm doing this as your friend." Although Asura didn't think of Hal as a friend anymore; the friend he had known was long gone. He hit him again with Vajra; the attack was so powerful that Asura himself slid backward a little bit. With a final scream, Hal's body faded. All that was left was a dark red soul.

Asura pushed his hair out of his eyes. His knees were shaking with relief, but he wore a triumphant grin. Vajra transformed and stretched his arms. He looked just as weary as Asura felt, but his smile mirrored his meister's. "I can't believe how close that was."

"Fun, though."

Vajra nodded eagerly. His wavy blonde hair, though matted, still managed to glint gold as lightning flashed. "I thought you were gonna get shot for sure!" he remarked.

"I'm just that cool." Asura grinned. "You're almost as cool. You deserve a treat, bro." He gestured to Hal's kishin egg soul. Its glow illuminated almost the whole crater. Its color was almost like firelight, but somehow vastly different; more cruel, less friendly.

Vajra grabbed it in both hands. His face looked red in its glow. "It's so warm," he said. "We let this one be for too long." He swallowed it, and the red glow disappeared.

A blast of wind, the first one in the whole day, swept through the crater, blowing away the memory of Hal's madness. Almost at once, the skies opened and rain fell down as if to wash away what had happened. Asura shivered and wrapped his scarf tighter around his neck.

"Cold?" Vajra asked. "I'm not. Hal will keep me warm." He licked his lips.

"I'm not that lucky," sighed Asura. He suddenly felt tired. "I should borrow your scarf more often."

xxx

The sky had cleared up its storm spent, and the stars were shining above, tiny pinpricks of light. The moon, at its peak, gazed down at the party below.

Shinigami-sama had picked an open spot to celebrate the defeat of Hal. It was in the form of an abandoned ruin; the walls had long ago crumbled to dust, and the inside was open to the elements. A band played in the corner and guests milled around the center chatting.

Shadows concealed Asura, who was standing in a corner, leaning against a sandy wall. He watched the party calmly, sipping his drink. Usually he would have been in the very midst of the crowd, entertaining guests, but this time his heart wasn't in it. Every time Asura closed his eyes, Hal's tortured face swam in the blackness, and the total control of water that he had commanded. Could embracing madness equal embracing power? _Impossible._

And yet...

_Hal was absolutely unafraid_, Asura decided. He and Vajra cut it way too close putting an end to that guy.

_Because I was afraid. I hesitated._

Asura raised his cup to take another sip, only to realize that it was empty. Lost in thought, he pressed the edge of the cup against his cheek.

_Being afraid can make me lose the battle_, he decided.

"Yo, Asura!" a cry startled him out of his thoughts. Shaking his hair out of his eyes, Asura turned to see Vajra heading his way.

Asura and Vajra high-fived.

"Hey! I have a present for you." Vajra held out a simple brown bag.

"Gee, thanks," snorted Asura, grinning at his blonde weapon.

Vajra nudged him impatiently. "Open it!" he insisted.

Asura tipped the bag upside-down so the contents fell onto his hand. It took him a while to figure out what it was. Finally, he chuckled and bro-patted Vajra on the back. "Why a scarf?"

He held it up so the moonlight would illuminate the cream-colored cloth better. The scarf was long and soft, both ends slightly tattered.

Vajra grinned proudly. "You seemed to like borrowing mine today—and you looked pretty badass wearing it, too. So I decided to make you this one—"

"You made this?" exclaimed Asura. He examined the knitting. Apart from a few places, the knitting was even and flawless.

"Yup. Flip it over."

Asura did. From the very middle of the scarf, three vertical eyes stared back at him. They were just drawn on, but in the night they looked almost real, contrasting sharply with the cream color of the scarf.

"The eyes represent you," said Vajra. "Because you have three eyes."

Asura self-consciously adjusted his bangs to hide his forehead.

"You might not like them, but they're special. They're what make you, you. I thought you should be proud of them—and yourself. Not to mention that scarf."

Asura glanced over, half-convinced that Vajra was being sarcastic—but Vajra's turquoise eyes glinted earnestly back at him.

He smiled. "Thanks."

"Well, put it on!" exclaimed Vajra. He grabbed the scarf and began twisting it around Asura's neck.

"Hey, stop strangling me!"

"I almost have it!"

"I can do it!"

After a brief struggle, Asura proudly sported his new scarf. It was wrapped twice around his neck, with the ends swinging down dramatically, almost reaching the black of his pants. The garment was positioned so that the eye design was in front, just under Asura's chin.

Suddenly the music stopped playing.

"Everyone listen up!" yelled Shinigami-sama. He was standing on top of a low wall at the opposite side of the room. "As you all know, today the evil human Hal has been stopped! By none other than Asura and his weapon, Vajra."

Asura shrank backward into the shadows. Judging by the way Shinigami-sama was swaying, he was a little tipsy—who knew what he would say now.

"The reason we are still kishin-free this night is thanks to them," Shinigami-sama continued happily. "And I think we should have a round of applause to the best meister I have ever known! Come forward, Asura~!"

"Here he is!" cried Vajra, and grabbed Asura's arm. Before the latter could protest, the blonde raised their arms in the air together and darted into the light. Loud applause showered them and before long Asura found himself sporting a grin.

"Jolly good show! Jol-ly!" Excalibur patted Asura on the head with his cane.

"Yes, yes, good job, guys!" hiccupped Shinigami-sama. "It's thanks to their fearlessness that we are having this party! I want you all to take a look at that young man down there—because someday he might just take my place!"

The smile slipped from Asura's face.

_Fearless, yeah right_, he thought bitterly. _I almost failed because I was afraid. I could have failed everyone. We could have lost..._

And so Asura, Shinigami-sama's most promising pupil, began to be afraid of fear.

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**I sincerely apologize for making Asura and Vajra "bro's". I don't have much experience with writing guy characters. Also, I did notice that Vajra seems...gay ;_; Since the only time when he appears in the anime is in his stubby weapon form, I have to craft a personality for him. And that personality will be fabulous. Which is how he managed to ****make a whole scarf in less than a day.  
**

**Don't forget to tell me what you think!**


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